Raymond James Financial Inc. Buys New Holdings in The Middleby Co. (NASDAQ:MIDD)

Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in The Middleby Co. (NASDAQ:MIDD - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 83,516 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $11,312,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned approximately 0.16% of Middleby as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Avior Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Middleby by 820.0% in the 3rd quarter. Avior Wealth Management LLC now owns 322 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 287 shares in the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. increased its holdings in Middleby by 41.1% in the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 398 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $54,000 after buying an additional 116 shares in the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. lifted its position in shares of Middleby by 16.0% during the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 566 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $77,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in shares of Middleby by 27.2% during the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 622 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $84,000 after acquiring an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Neo Ivy Capital Management acquired a new stake in shares of Middleby in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $88,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 98.55% of the company's stock.

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Middleby Trading Up 2.7 %

NASDAQ MIDD traded up $4.13 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $158.54. 621,695 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 604,405. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.50 billion, a PE ratio of 21.87 and a beta of 1.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 1.70 and a current ratio of 2.81. The Middleby Co. has a 1-year low of $118.41 and a 1-year high of $182.73. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $159.67 and its 200 day simple moving average is $145.28.

Middleby (NASDAQ:MIDD - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 25th. The industrial products company reported $2.88 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.50 by $0.38. The business had revenue of $1.01 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $996.69 million. Middleby had a return on equity of 14.66% and a net margin of 10.14%. The business's revenue was up .4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.65 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that The Middleby Co. will post 9.11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. KeyCorp lifted their price objective on Middleby from $160.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, January 27th. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price objective on shares of Middleby from $192.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "hold" rating and set a $160.00 target price (down previously from $170.00) on shares of Middleby in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Middleby from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, January 27th. Finally, Robert W. Baird lifted their price objective on Middleby from $157.00 to $227.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Middleby presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $180.86.

Insider Buying and Selling at Middleby

In related news, Director Chapin Sarah Palisi sold 500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $163.51, for a total value of $81,755.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 6,111 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $999,209.61. This trade represents a 7.56 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 1.16% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Middleby

The Middleby Corporation designs, markets, manufactures, distributes, and services foodservice, food processing, and residential kitchen equipment worldwide. Its Commercial Foodservice Equipment Group segment offers conveyor, combi, convection, baking, proofing, deck, speed cooking, and hydrovection ovens; ranges, fryers, and rethermalizers; steam cooking, food warming, catering, induction cooking, and countertop cooking equipment; heated cabinets, charbroilers, ventless cooking systems, kitchen ventilation, toasters, griddles, charcoal grills, professional mixers, stainless steel fabrication, custom millwork, professional refrigerators, blast chillers, cold rooms, ice machines, and freezers; soft serve ice cream, coffee and beverage dispensing, home and professional craft brewing equipment; and fry dispensers, bottle filling and canning equipment, IoT solutions, and controls development and manufacturing.